Janusz Kaminski

Janusz is a Polish cinematographer and film director who started his career in the United States. He took filmmaking as a profession before attending to the AFI Conservatory, where he graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree. He worked under cinematographer Phedon Papamichael, first as a gaffer, then as chief lighting technician, and eventually second unit director of photography. He shot numerous B-movies for directors Roger Corman and Katt Shea, as well as the romantic musical comedy Cool as Ice, starring Vanilla Ice. He was first discovered by Steven Spielberg in 1991. After seeing the television film Wildflower, Spielberg hired Kamiński to shoot Class of '61, a television film in which Spielberg served as producer. He twice won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography in the 1990s. He has been nominated four additional times for Amistad, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, War Horse and Lincoln. In 2010, he was awarded the Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal by the AFI Conservatory. He became a member of the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) in 1994 but resigned in 2006.

Born on: 17 June, 1959

Born in: Ziebice, Poland